WO2017178727A1

WO2017178727A1 - Air diffusion device having reduced leakage in the closed configuration

Info

Publication number: WO2017178727A1
Application number: PCT/FR2017/050755
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pascal Martin
Original assignee: Psa Automobiles S.A.
Priority date: 2016-04-13
Filing date: 2017-03-31
Publication date: 2017-10-19
Also published as: FR3050148A1; FR3050148B1; EP3442817A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to an air diffusion device comprising a duct (3) for channeling a flow of air (F) to an outlet opening (4) that opens into an enclosure, and also closure means (6) comprising at least one thin closure element (6A, 6B, 6C) mounted so as to be able to pivot in said duct (3) upstream of said outlet opening (4) and able to adopt a closed configuration in which it blocks said duct (3) so as to prevent as far as possible said flow of air (F) escaping through said outlet opening (4); characterized in that said duct (3) comprises, downstream of said closure means (6) and upstream of said outlet opening (4), at least one lateral evacuation opening (10) located tangentially in line with the downstream section of the at least one said thin closure element(6A, 6B, 6C). The invention also relates to a dashboard incorporating at least one such air diffusion device.

Description

DEVICE FOR DELIVERING AIR WITH LEAKS REDUCED IN

CLOSURE CONFIGURATION. Field of the invention

The present invention generally relates to devices for diffusing air into a passenger compartment of a motor vehicle. Background of the invention

Such an air diffusion device generally comprises a body comprising a conduit adapted to channel a flow of air to an outlet opening opening on an enclosure, as well as concealment means pivotally mounted in the conduit and intended, in a particular configuration, to prevent as much as possible the flow of ducted air flowing in the duct to escape through the outlet opening.

According to a first embodiment known from the prior art, these concealment means are constituted by a row of blackout type airflow deflection vanes pivotally mounted in the duct upstream of the outlet opening. around a plurality of horizontal or vertical parallel axes, and able to come to occupy a closure configuration in which they overlap partially so as to obstruct the conduit.

However, due to the operating and plating gaps, there is always a residual space between two adjacent fins and between each end fin and a corresponding inner rim of the conduit against which it partially rests.

According to a second embodiment also well known in the prior art, the occultation means consist of a single occulting flap pivotally mounted in the duct upstream of the outlet opening around a horizontal or vertical axis, and able to come to occupy a configuration of closure in which it obstructs the conduit. As for the previous embodiment and because of the operating and plating games, there remains a residual space between each edge of the flap and the corresponding inner rim of the duct against which it rests.

The existence of this (these) clearance (s) in the two known embodiments of the occultation means has the consequence that a residual part of the air flow succeeds in escaping through the outlet opening of the duct. when they occupy their closed configuration, which not only does not ensure a perfect seal, but also induced for some flows wheezing that can be annoying for those present in the enclosure.

In order to overcome this problem, it is known to overmold, along the edges of the fins or the flap, elastically deformable lips of elastomeric material to obtain a virtually perfect sealing and sealing in the closure configuration.

Unfortunately, this solution has a particularly high cost, which limits its implementation to high-end air distribution devices.

The French patent application FR 3,012,208 filed by the applicant proposes to provide on the duct, and upstream of conventional first occulting means (row of fins or flap), at least one orifice associated with a second means of concealment arranged to totally obstruct this orifice when the difference between the air pressure upstream of the first concealment means and the air pressure at the outlet opening is greater than the difference between the pressure of the air air upstream of the first occultation means and the pressure of the air downstream of said orifice; and to release access to this orifice when the difference between the air pressure upstream of the first occultation means and the air pressure at the outlet opening is less than the difference between the pressure air upstream of the first occultation means and the air pressure downstream of the orifice, to allow the evacuation of at least a portion of the ducted air flow through this orifice. Thus, the flow of air escaping from the outlet opening when the first conventional occulting means occupy their closed configuration is very clearly reduced or even zero.

This solution, however, requires many adjustments and is also complex to implement.

Object and summary of the invention

The present invention therefore aims to provide a solution that is both effective and economical to limit residual air leakage when the occultation means occupy their closed configuration.

To this end, it proposes an air diffusion device comprising a duct capable of channeling a flow of air to an outlet opening opening onto an enclosure, as well as occultation means comprising at least one thin concealing element. pivotally mounted in said duct upstream of said outlet opening and adapted to occupy a closure configuration in which it obstructs said duct so as to prevent as much as possible said flow of air from escaping through said outlet opening ;

characterized in that said duct comprises, downstream of said concealment means and upstream of said outlet opening, at least one lateral evacuation orifice located at the level of the tangential projection of the downstream slice of the at least one said thin concealment element. when occupying said closure configuration.

The presence of this at least said lateral evacuation orifice allows almost all residual nets passing through the occultation means when they occupy their closure configuration, to be discharged laterally out of the conduit, upstream of the opening. exit and to an area where they are not a source of inconvenience to the occupants.

The invention also has the advantage of being particularly economical since it requires no addition of material or additional manufacturing step. According to an advantageous characteristic, said air diffuser device comprises a plurality of said evacuation orifices distributed along the length of said at least one thin concealing element.

According to preferred features in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention, taken alone or in combination:

said occulting means are constituted by a first row of deflection vanes of said airflow of the occulting type and pivotally mounted along parallel axes while being integral in rotation with each other;

said device comprises a second row of deflection vanes of said air flow pivotally mounted along parallel axes, being integral in rotation with each other, the fins of this second row extending perpendicularly to the fins of said first row; downstream of the latter and the at least said discharge port;

said device comprises a slider mounted to rotate and slide on a fin of said second row while being articulated via gear means to a fin of said first row, so that its rotational movement causes the blades to rotate simultaneously; said second row while its translational movement causes the simultaneous rotation of the fins of said first row; and or

said gear means consist of a rack arranged along said slider and engrained with a toothed sector situated on said fin of said first row.

said occultation means consist of a single occulting shutter;

said device comprises at least one row of deflection vanes of said air flow pivotally mounted along parallel axes, being integral in rotation with each other, the fins of said at least one row extending downstream of said occulting shutter and at least said exhaust port; and or said device comprises two said rows whose respective fins extend perpendicularly.

The invention also aims in a second aspect, a dashboard incorporating such an air diffusion device.

Brief description of the drawings

The description of the invention will now be continued by the detailed description of an exemplary embodiment, given below by way of illustration but without limitation, with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional perspective view of a first embodiment of an air diffusion device according to the invention on which the occultation means are represented in open configuration;

- Figure 2 is a section of the diffusion device of Figure 1 taken along the section plane II-II and on which the occultation means are shown in the closed configuration; and

- Figure 3 is a schematic sectional view of a second embodiment of an air diffusion device according to the invention on which the occulting means are shown in the closed configuration.

Detailed description of two preferred embodiments

Figures 1 and 2 show an air diffusion device 1 according to a first embodiment of the invention and intended to be implanted in the dashboard (not shown) of a motor vehicle to diffuse in the interior of this vehicle air pulsed from a ventilation system and / or air conditioning.

This device comprises a body 2 defining a duct 3 of substantially rectangular shape and adapted to channel a flow of air F to an outlet opening 4 opening into the passenger compartment of the vehicle, and two perpendicular rows 5, 6 of fins for deflecting the flow of air F housed inside this duct 3. In the remainder of this description, the terms "upstream" and "downstream" used to characterize the position of certain elements of the air diffusion device 1 are to be considered with respect to the direction of flow of the air flow F in the duct. 3.

Row 5, located in the vicinity of the outlet opening 4 of the duct 3, consists of five horizontal fins 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E distributed at regular intervals one above the other over the entire height of this duct. 3.

The latter, pivotally mounted along parallel horizontal axes, are further secured in rotation by means of a connecting rod connecting them to each other and not visible in the figures.

Row 6, situated upstream of the row 5 and the outlet opening 4, consists of three vertical fins 6A, 6B, 6C distributed at regular intervals, one beside the other, along the width of the duct 3.

The latter, pivotally mounted along parallel vertical axes, are further secured in rotation by means of a connecting rod connecting them to each other and not visible in the figures.

The fins 6A, 6B, 6C also constitute occulting means intended to prevent as much as possible the ducted air flow F flowing in the duct 3 from escaping through the outlet opening 4.

To do this, these fins are of the blackout type, that is to say they are able to come to occupy a closure configuration in which they partially overlap and where each end fin 6A, 6C rests partially against a corresponding internal rim 3A, 3C formed at the duct 3, so as to obstruct this duct 3 and to prevent as much as possible the ducted air flow F to escape through the outlet opening 4.

The air diffusion device 1 also comprises a slider 7 for controlling the rotation of the two rows 5, 6 of fins.

This slider 7 is slidably mounted on the central fin 5C of the row of fins 5 while being integral in rotation with this fin 5C, so that its rotational movement by a user up or down causes the simultaneous pivoting of all the fins 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E and causes a change in the vertical orientation of the flow of air leaving the duct 3 through the outlet opening 4.

The slider 7 is also articulated via gearing means to the central fin 6B of the row of fins 6, so that its displacement in translation causes the simultaneous rotation of the fins 6A, 6B, 6C and causes a modification of the horizontal orientation of the air flow leaving the duct 3 through the outlet opening 4.

As illustrated in Figure 2, the gear means are constituted by a rack 8 formed along the slider 7 and engrained with a toothed sector 9 located on the central vertical vane 6B.

According to the invention, the duct 3 comprises, downstream of the row of vertical vanes 6 and upstream of the outlet opening 4 and the row of horizontal vanes 5, at least one lateral evacuation orifice 10 situated at the level of the tangential projections of the downstream slices of these fins 6A, 6B, 6C on this duct 3 when they occupy their closed configuration illustrated in FIG. 2.

In this configuration, studies carried out in the wind tunnel have in fact shown that the residual air streams escaping through the row of fins 6 are in their great majority oriented tangentially to these fins 6A, 6B, 6C.

The presence of one or more orifices 10 thus enables these tangential residual nets f to be discharged out of the duct 3, upstream of the outlet opening 4, and towards the inside of the dashboard of the vehicle where they do not constitute a source of inconvenience for the occupants.

Advantageously, the duct 3 comprises a plurality of rectangular discharge orifices 10 uniformly distributed over the length of the fins 6A, 6B, 6C.

According to alternative embodiments, the shape and dimensions of the outlet or holes are different. According to other embodiments, the orientation of the two rows of fins is reversed: the fins of the row 5 being oriented vertically while those of the row 6 are oriented horizontally.

According to still other embodiments:

- The row of fins 5 is absent: the air diffusion device then comprising only one row of blackout vanes 6;

the number of fins of at least one of the two rows is different; and or

the drive in rotation of the fins is carried out via a manual drive member different from the slider 7 or via electrical control means.

An air diffusion device according to a second embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to FIG.

In the following and in this Figure 3, we kept the same references for the elements identical to the first embodiment and added a bonus for similar elements.

The air diffusion device is similar to the device 1 described above, except that the vertical fins 6A ', 6B', 6C of the second row 6 'of fins are not of the blackout type and that the means occultation are constituted by a single blackout shutter 12 associated with at least one lateral discharge port 10 'provided on the conduit 3' of the body 2 '.

The flap 12, pivotally mounted about a vertical axis in the duct 3 'upstream of the two rows 5, 6' of fins and the outlet opening 4, is able to occupy a closure configuration in which each its two end 12A, 12C rests against a corresponding inner rim 3A ', 3C formed at the duct 3, so as to obstruct the duct 3 and to prevent as much as possible the ducted air flow F to escape through the outlet opening 4. A drive wheel (not visible in FIG. 3) is further provided on the front of the diffusion device to ensure the control in rotation of this flap 12.

The rectangular lateral discharge orifices 10 'are formed at the level of the tangential projection of the downstream edge of the flap 12 on this duct 3' when they occupy their closed configuration illustrated in FIG. 3, so as to allow the evacuation of residual tangential air streams f out of the duct 3 ', upstream of the outlet opening 4, and towards the inside of the dashboard of the vehicle where they do not constitute a source of inconvenience for the occupants .

According to alternative embodiments, the shape and dimensions of the outlet or holes are different.

According to other embodiments, the orientation of the two rows of fins is reversed: the fins of the first row being oriented vertically while those of the second row are oriented horizontally.

According to still other embodiments:

- One of the two rows of fins is absent: the air diffusion device then comprising only one row of non-occulting fins;

the number of fins of at least one of the two rows is different; and or

the rotation of the fins and / or of the flap is carried out via different manual drive members of the slider 7 and / or the wheel or via electrical control means.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described and shown, but also encompasses all variants within the scope of those skilled in the art.

It will be noted in particular that the diffusion device may also be located in different locations of a motor vehicle such as the ceiling or roof lamp, a central console disposed between two seats, a central leg separating two side openings. The invention is furthermore not limited to the automobile field: the diffusion device may for example be installed in a partition or false ceiling of a building.

Claims

1. Air diffusion device comprising a duct (3; 3 ') adapted to channel an air flow (F) to an outlet opening (4) opening on an enclosure, as well as occultation means (6; 12) comprising at least one thin concealing member (6A, 6B, 6C; 12) pivotally mounted in said duct (3; 3 ') upstream of said outlet opening (4) and adapted to occupy a configuration of closure in which it obstructs said duct (3; 3 ') so as to prevent as much as possible said air flow (F) from escaping through said outlet opening (4);

characterized in that said duct (3; 3 ') comprises, downstream of said occluding means (6; 12) and upstream of said outlet opening (4), at least one lateral evacuation orifice (10; ') situated at the level of the tangential projection of the downstream slice of the at least said occulting thin element (6A, 6B, 6C; 12) when it occupies said closure configuration.

2. An air diffusion device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of said discharge orifices (10; 10 ') distributed along the length of said at least one thin-walled element (6A, 6B, 6C; 12).

3. Air diffusion device according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that said occulting means are constituted by a first row (6) of deflection fins (6A, 6B, 6C) of said flow type of air occulting and pivotally mounted along parallel axes being integral in rotation with each other.

4. An air diffusion device according to claim 3, characterized in that it comprises a second row (5) of deflection vanes (5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E) of said air flow pivotally mounted according to parallel axes being integral in rotation with each other, the fins of this second row extending perpendicular to the fins (6A, 6B, 6C) of said first row (6) downstream of the latter and the at least said orifice evacuation (10).

5. Air diffusion device according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises a slider (7) mounted to rotate and slide on a fin (5C) of said second row (5) while being articulated via gear means (7, 9) to a fin (6B) of said first row (6), so that its rotational movement causes the simultaneous rotation of the fins (5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E) of said second row (5) while its displacement in translation causes the simultaneous rotation of the fins (6A, 6B, 6C) of said first row (6).

6. Air diffusion device according to claim 5, characterized in that said gear means are constituted by a rack (8) formed along said slider (7) and engrainée with a toothed sector (9) located on said fin (6B) of said first row (6).

7. Air diffusion device according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that said occultation means are constituted by a single shutter (12).

8. Apparatus for air diffusion according to claim 7, characterized in that it comprises at least one row (5; 6 ') of deflection vanes (5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E; 6A', 6B ', 6C) of said air flow (F) pivotally mounted along parallel axes being integral in rotation with each other, the fins of this at least said row (5; 6') extending downstream of said shutter (12) and at least said exhaust port (10 ').

9. Apparatus for air diffusion according to claim 8, characterized in that it comprises two said rows (5; 6 '), the respective fins (5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E; 6A', 6B ', 6C) extend perpendicularly.

10. Dashboard of a motor vehicle incorporating at least one air diffusion device according to one of claims 1 to 9.